And the Very Happy Thanksgiving
by kingdomkeepers365
Summary: When Jake realizes he can't go home for Thanksgiving this year, Cassandra invites him to help them both, and accompany her to dinner at her parents' house. Jassandra. One shot. Lots of fluff and flirting here. Happy Thanksgiving!


And a Happy Thanksgiving

Cassandra was walking around the Library when she happened upon Jake on his cell phone. He seemed upset, and she couldn't help but stop to listen.

"I know sweetie, I miss you too" he said gently "But your Grandpop's pretty mad at me."

There was a brief moment of silence while whoever was on the other line spoke. Cassandra could not ignore the look of pain and guilt in Jake's eyes.

"I'll tell you what" he continued, managing to speak in a very calming tone. "Why don't you have your mama record the parade, and we'll watch it together at Christmas….I know it's not the same pumpkin but it's the best I can do…Alright….I love you too. Bye"

He took a deep breath as if holding back tears, and turned to find Cassandra standing there.

"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed. "I wasn't trying to intrude I was just passing by and you seemed upset. I wanted to make sure you were okay"

"Yeah I'm fine I guess" he sniffed. "It's just…that was my niece: Hannah. After everything that's happened, my pop…well let's just say I've been told I'm not welcome in his house for Thanksgiving. So uh, Hannah's real upset that she's not gonna see me"

Cassandra,, heartbroken for him, walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder. She would have hugged him, but for some reason it felt too invasive. She wasn't even sure what to say.

"I'm so sorry Jake" she decided. "That's awful"

"Yeah well…" he muttered.

"So what are you gonna do now?"

"Oh I don't know. I'll probably just hang out here, maybe watch the game in the theatre"

"But its Thanksgiving!" She couldn't bear to think of him all alone on such a special holiday.

"Well what else am I supposed to do Cassie?! Baird's going home for dinner, and I assume Flynn's going with her."

"They made up?!" Cassandra chimed, momentarily distracted from the situation at hand.

"He came back last night. They left together and they're not back here yet, so I'm assuming. Anyway, they won't be here, or else I'd cook somethin' up myself"

Cassandra let out her thoughts before she could even think to hesitate. In the moment, seeing him so upset, it drove her to be impulsive.

"Well what do you say to having Thanksgiving with me?"

"What?"

"My parents called yesterday and invited me to have dinner with them" she explained. "It's the first time I'll have been there in a few years and I'm happy to go, but, to be honest, I really don't wanna go alone, and you need a place to go so, why don't you come with me?"

He stared at her for a moment, confused. The offer was so sudden, and not at all what he was expecting. He couldn't accept her invitation; he'd feel like he was intruding. Then again, it would be really nice to meet Cassandra's family and, if he couldn't be with his, he couldn't think of any one he'd like to spend Thanksgiving with more than her.

"Alright" he agreed. "That would be great. Thanks"

Cassandra smiled at him. She loved her family, but like Jake always said, they weren't easy. If she was being honest, she was slightly grateful he couldn't be with his family this Thanksgiving, even though she knew it was selfish; with him by her side, she knew she'd be able to get through the day.

Late the next morning, Cassandra was standing in front of her TV, putting in her earrings, when the doorbell rang. She jogged to open the door excitedly. Jake stood outside her apartment, grinning widely.

He looked more handsome than she was used to seeing him, his hair all neatly held in place. His button-down was a deep red, completely neat with the collar perfectly placed.

"Hey" he said.

"Hey" she smirked. She smiled at him, her gorgeous, bright smile: the one that lit up her eyes, and brought her whole face to life. "Come in"

Jake looked around her apartment; he'd never been inside it before. It was perfect for her: quirky and vintage style. His eyes caught the lace doilies on her coffee table, and the cat-shaped cookie jar on her kitchen counter.

His focus shifted to her next. She looked beautiful as always, wearing a brown dress over a dark orange turtleneck and pair of stockings. A giant turkey pin sat on her collar, what would have looked ridiculous on anyone else complimenting her perfectly.

"I brought pie" he said, holding up the box in his hand, breaking the awkward silence that had started to arise. "I didn't want to show up empty handed so…"

"What kind did you make?" Cassandra asked, walking over to the oven.

"Pecan"

"Oh" she sighed, reaching into the oven. "Great minds think alike I guess" As she spoke, she pulled a pie out of the oven that was, what else: Pecan.

"Oh" he chuckled. "I'm sorry Cassie. If I'd have known…"

"No don't worry about it" she assured him, indicating another tray on the counter. "I made turkey cookies too" There on the counter was a whole batch of sugar cookies, cut and frosted to look like cartoon turkeys"

"Wow" Jake noted. "You really went to hell with yourself with the desserts"

"I bake when I'm nervous" Cassandra explained. "Baking involves math, and math is comforting"

He assumed she meant that she was nervous about going home. That was true of course, but what she didn't tell him was that she was nervous about him coming with her. Things had been so good between them lately, it's why she felt okay inviting him, but what if that very act ruined everything?

She didn't know what would happen when she saw her parents again; she hadn't since the library. What if she changed around them, became that old shadow of herself? That girl was the girl who betrayed Jake, the girl he stopped trusting, who hurt him. Now she was herself, and he was flirting with her, and she liked it. She didn't want it to change. What if when they went home he decided she wasn't what she thought he was, and it all ended? She didn't want that.

"I'm really sorry about your pie." he said. "I feel awful"

"Seriously Jake its fine. Besides, that just means we get to keep one for ourselves!"

"For us?" Jake muttered.

"Yeah. I'll give you half to take home, and I'll keep the other half"

"Oh" For a second he thought she'd meant that they'd come back to her place for pie after dinner. Of course that wasn't it. It was stupid. He didn't know why it ever crossed his mind. She eyed him quizzically.

"Do you want a piece right now" she asked. He smiled.

"That sounds amazing"

Cassandra smiled and gave a little skip as she turned back to the kitchen. She took out two plates from the cupboard and cut them each a piece of the fresh, hot pie. She handed him his and he followed her over to the couch, where she immediately plopped down and patted the cushion next to her.

Jake turned to the TV and saw the Thanksgiving Day parade in full swing.

"I'm sorry" Cassandra squirmed, afraid that she would trigger some sadness in him again. "I meant to turn it off before you came. I just like the parade too"

"It's fine. It actually makes me feel better to sit down and watch it."

"It's just so much fun you know? All the singers, and the giant balloons? I feel like aa kid again"

"You and Hannah'd get along real well"

"Well then, maybe one day I'll just have to meet her"

"That would be real nice" Jake agreed.

Cassandra giggled shyly. She did hope she'd get to meet more of his family someday. It would be nice to see a part of his old life that wasn't miserable.

Jake took a bit of his pie first and moaned.

"That's really good Cassie. You did a great job"

"Thanks" she chimed. "Do you want a taste of mine?"

"Uh Cassie…you know we're eating the same pie right?"

"Yes" she teased. "But I bet my slice tastes better than yours"

"Oh no" he retorted. "I think mine tastes better than yours"

"Well then we'll just have to test that out we?"

The Librarians laughed as they jabbed their forks towards each other, attempting to shove pieces of their pie into the other's mouth. Cassandra screamed as the sticky sugar began to cover her chin, hitting a new spot every time Jake missed her mouth.

By the time they had finally managed to take a bite, both of their faces were sufficiently a mess, covered in syrup and goo.

"Well" Casssandra joked while she chewed. "Looks like we were both wrong; they taste exactly the same"

"You got a little something" Jake whispered. He licked his finger and gently brought it to her cheer, cleaning off the mess he had made.

There was silence between them for the moment as they froze like that, staring into each other's eyes. Only the sound of the parade on the TV could be heard behind them, but neither of them noticed it. It was Cassandra who eventually broke the stance. She shifted back away from Jake, letting his hand fall back down to the couch.

"We should get going" she muttered. "Traffic's gonna be awful and we can't take the back door. Ever since all the problems happened, Jenkins has been super strict about using it for non-Library purposes"

"Yeah you're right" Jake stammered, trying to process what had just happened. "Uh…I walked here so…"

"We can take my car" Cassandra interjected. Now that the stillness was over, she was working to move everything as quickly as possible, while simultaneously trying to push back the thought swarming through her head. "It's parked down the street. Let me just get the cookies packed away"

Five minutes later, Jake held the door open for Cassandra as she carried their desserts out of the apartment. Both of them pretended not to notice when their arms briefly brushed as she passed by.

That evening, Jake, Cassandra, her parents, and her sister and brother in law sat around the Thanksgiving dinner table, chowing down on Turkey and all the fix-ins.

"So Cassandra" her mother said. "It's been so long since we've seen you. How is everything?"

"Great actually!" she exclaimed. "I've been doing a lot for myself. I got this great new job at a research library. That's actually how I know Jake"

"Oh" her mother sounded confused. "That's good, but it's not what I meant"

"Oh. That" Jake watched, disappointed as the smile fell from Cassandra's face. Her eyes dimmed. She stared down at her lap.

"It's fine" she continued. "Still no flare-ups or growths, so, you don't have to worry" Jake felt for her hand under the table and squeezed, giving her the support he knew she needed. She looked at him and smiled lightly.

"Well you know if things ever get bad, just let us know…"

"I know Mom. Let's just not talk about this today. It's a holiday."

"It's important to talk about"

"I said not today!" Cassandra shouted. Her parents seemed startled. She'd never acted like this before, not once had she stood up to them. Now she froze, feeling herself dissolve into that shell, afraid of what came next.

"So how did you two meet?" Jake asked, turning towards Cassandra's sister and her husband. Instantly another conversation had started, a story Cassandra had heard a dozen times.

 _Thank you_ she mouthed, looking up at Jake. He winked at her.

After dinner, the whole family was gathered around the living room ready to settle down and watch TV. Cassandra arrived last, carrying beers for her and Jake. When she got in the room however, there were no more seats. She shrugged, handed Jake his beer, and moved to sit on the floor in front of his arm chair.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Sitting on the floor" she said. "What does it look like I'm doing?"

"No don't do that. You'll get your dress all wrinkled." He moved over slightly and patted the few inches of cushion next to him.

"Are you suggesting I sit on your lap?" she laughed, making sure that her parents were too busy handling the television to notice.

"Yes exactly!"

"You're out of your mind"

"Come on" Jake insisted. "You'll be more comfortable that way"

Cassandra eyes him suspiciously, but the truth was she was tired, and she wouldn't mind a comforting arm to relax into. She sighed, and walked over to the chair plopping herself down on Jake's thigh.

He wrapped his arm around her waist and smiled. She expected to laugh, but, unexpectedly, she liked how this felt. He knew how to help her get positioned just right so she was as comfortable as possible. Then again, when she thought back to the rest of the day, she realized that maybe the comfort she felt had nothing to do with position at all.

"What are we watching?" Mrs. Cillian asked.

"Ooh!" Cassandra chimed. "Peanuts Thanksgiving! We have to!"

"Sounds good to me" her sister agreed.

Her mother set up the movie and barely hesitating, she let her head fall onto Jake's shoulder. This was different. This was not what she was expecting tonight, but somehow, this felt like exactly where she should be.

Late that night, the Librarians arrived back at Cassandra's door.

"I had a great time tonight" she said.

"Me too" he agreed. "I'm glad I came"

Cassandra smirked again, feeling only slightly shy. Just as she was about to open the door, it struck her that she didn't want this to end.

"Do you want to come in for some coffee, or some more pie? We could load up some Thanksgiving episodes of Friends on Netflix."

"That sounds lovely" Jake agreed. "Really it does, but I think I need to head home and get some sleep. There's a case that needs my attention tomorrow"

"Alright" Cassandra said solemnly. "Goodnight then"

"Goodnight"

Cassandra turned to unlock her door, and Jake began to walk back towards his apartment. He only got a few steps away before something inside of him made him turn around. Maybe it was the beer, or all of the excess calories, or maybe it was something that was always going to happen, just waiting for the right time.

"Hey Cassandra" he called. She turned to him just in time, her door half open.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think maybe, I don't know, maybe we could have dinner again sometime? Like, not on Thanksgiving, and uh…and just the two of us." Cassandra smirked.

"Like a date?" she asked. He exhaled, answering the question to both her and himself.

"I guess so yeah"

Cassandra stared at him for a moment. He didn't know what to expect. Maybe he misread everything today, everything in the past month. Maybe she was about to call him crazy and run into her apartment.

"That would be nice" she said, surprising them both.

"Alright then. I'll see you tomorrow"

"See you tomorrow"

Cassandra walked into the apartment and closed the door behind her. Jake walked away, smiling a little bit wider, a little bit more bounce in his step.

Back inside, Cassandra kicked off her shoes and slid down the wall, squealing ever so slightly.

For the first time in her recent memory, she could definitely say she'd had a very happy thanksgiving.


End file.
